Saint Benedict CSB 8-2,3-0 MIAC

John Carroll JCU 8-1,2-1 OAC

Saint Benedict CSB

8-2,3-0 MIAC

Final

Dec. 17, 2024

John Carroll JCU

8-1,2-1 OAC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	3	4	OT 1	F
Saint Benedict CSB	6	15	9	21	8	59
John Carroll JCU	16	11	7	17	12	63

Summary
Box Score

Photo by Michelle Fowler

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | 12/17/2024 11:37:00 AM | Joe Ginley '16, SID

Free Throws Pave the Way for Win for Blue Streaks over CSB in Puerto Rico

JCU converted on free throws late to defeat College of Saint Benedict

BAYAMON, Puerto Rico – The first game of the Puerto Rico Clasico was indeed a classic for John Carroll Women's Basketball.

Doing battle with a talented 8-1 College of Saint Benedict (MN) team, the Blue Streaks emerged victorious in overtime on Tuesday morning, 63-59.

The overtime victory marked the team's first since January 21, 2023 (a 72-61 conquest of Muskingum). JCU is now 3-0 in overtime affairs in the Beth Andrews era.

The story of the game proved to be free throws. John Carroll converted 19-of-26 tries from the charity stripe, while CSB struggled to 8-of-16. Seven of JCU's 12 points in overtime came from free throws, which was the difference.

After a productive first day in Puerto Rico on Monday, the Blue Streaks strolled out of the gates. Aided by triples from Ava Ryncarz and Ella Neitzel, the Blue & Gold rolled to a 16-6 lead after the first quarter. That would prove to be John Carroll's largest lead of the day.

But the Bennies soon warmed up. After a Graci Semptimphelter triple to nudge the score to 21-13, St. Benedict raced to a 6-0 run to narrow the gap to two points with two minutes to play. Thankfully, JCU finished strong with late layups by Semptimphelter and Abigail Rosol to push the lead to six at half, 27-21.

John Carroll looked to be in command for much of the third, upping the advantage to nine near the midpoint thanks to contributions from several Streaks. But a mini-run by CSB down the stretch slimmed the margin to just four, 34-30, entering the fourth.

JCU could only keep St. Benedict out of arm's reach for so long, as the Bennies at last tied the game near the midway mark of the quarter, 43-all. But the Blue Streaks did not panic, aided by strong play from Carly Perusek. Ava Ryncarz grabbed a 51-49 lead with a pair of free throws with under a minute left in the quarter, but the Bennies got a late layup to send it to extra time.

With a quick triple in overtime, CSB took its first lead of the ballgame. But Ryncarz responded with one of her own, and when the Bennies got another, Perusek provided an answer with an and-one. Free throws were JCU's golden ticket in the final 90 seconds, as the Blue Streaks made 6-of-6 attempts from the line to grab the lead and then hang on.

Carly Perusek was the star of the show, with a career-high 15 points plus 8 rebounds. Ava Ryncarz finished close to a double-double with 14 points and 9 boards. Graci Semptimphelter also reached double-digits with 12 points, adding 5 rebounds and 3 assists.

Next Up
John Carroll will play again in Puerto Rico on Wednesday, this time against Carthage College at 1 pm EST.

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